What is a “Skill Issue”? Definition, Possible Origins & More (2024)

Co-authored byJanice Tieperman

Last Updated: July 15, 2024Fact Checked

What is a skill issue?

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1. “Skill issue” is a joking insult used to taunt fellow gamers. Some players use the term in a semi-serious way to point out a definitive skill gap, but the term is most commonly used in a playful or ironic sense when a player’s skill is irrelevant to the situation at hand.

   • Some people say “sounds like a skill issue” or “simply a difference in skill” rather than “skill issue” on its own.^[1]

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   Taunt a fellow player when they’re having a bad game. Maybe you’re 1v1ing a friend in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate or are teaming up with someone in a League of Legends game. Whenever they complain about negative circ*mstances in the game, hit them with a playful “skill issue.”

   • Person A: “How does Ahri keep dodging me???”
     Person B: “Skill issue”
   • Person A: “I accidentally missed my combo… I’m gonna freak out”
     Person B: “Sounds like a skill issue to me”
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   Joke about something that the player has no control over. Did something totally random or unfortunate happen to your friend? Poke fun at their misfortune with a sarcastic use of “skill issue.”

   • Person A: “Sorry I disconnected, my dad somehow managed to unplug our internet router??”
     Person B: “Skill issue”
   • Person A: “My power just went out…”
     Person B: “L + ratio + skill issue”
     • In this context, L+ ratio is another type of cheeky taunt used to playfully degrade someone.^[2]

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1. Respond to “skill issue” with something equally snarky. At the end of the day, “skill issue” is a remark used jokingly—it isn’t meant to be a serious insult. Still, a sarcastic comeback can be a fun way to turn the tables on a fellow gamer who’s trying to get under your skin. Try saying something like:

   • “You would know!”
   • “You’re right. I should’ve known that… [insert unpredictable scenario here]”
   • “Come on, is that all you got?”

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1. “Skill issue” emerged from the gaming community around 2020. There’s no internet celebrity or iconic screenshot credited with the birth of “skill issue,” but it definitely became a buzzword on Twitter and Reddit as a taunting reply to gamers who were venting about their video game experiences online. Chances are, someone uttered the now-famous phrase on Twitch or in the chat section of a Twitch stream.

   • GIFs captioned with the phrase helped it to spread to other social media platforms (like Discord).
   • “Skill issue” is often used on TikTok.^[3]

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1. See Also

   'Skill Issue' Is a Common Phrase on TikTok, but What Does It Mean?

   “Skill issue” can refer to an issue with someone’s professional skills. In the world of HR and the professional workplace, “skill issue” isn’t a snarky comment at all—it’s a lack of know-how that prevents a worker from giving 100% to a given job.^[4]

   • Professional skill issues come in all shapes and sizes. Technical skill issues can refer to someone who lacks up-to-date knowledge in their field (e.g., someone who got a computer science degree in the 90s or early 2000s), while soft skill issues can refer to someone who isn’t great at communicating or getting along with their co-workers/employees.

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